Rich Rodriguez: A Collassal Disappointment

Let me preface article by saying this: When Rich Rodriguez was hired in 2008, there was no one more excited than I. I dreamed of the most explosive offense in the Big Ten. I dreamed of Big Ten Championships. I even dared to dream of National championships, possibly mulitple championships. Watching the Rich Rod experience over the last two years was like getting a bucket of cold water thrown on me to wake up.

Rich Rod was given a pass last year because he was installing a new offense. Scott Shafer was scapegoated because the defense was supposed to carry the load. And the mantra was wait until year two, that is when Rodriguez's teams really took off.

Let's examine this year. A dominating opening performance coupled with a minor upset of an equally inept Charlie Weiss Notre Dame team had the Wolverine nation believing. After wins over Eastern Michigan and Indiana, Michigan was ranked and being discussed as a player in the Big Ten race.

Back to back losses against Michigan State (the 2nd such loss to their in state rival) and Iowa set the Wolverines back some, but looking at the way they played late in those games, hope resonated.

To get back on track, Rich Rod got what he needed, Delaware State, the team that lost two games in one day for a half million dollar payout. The Penn State game was an utter debacle and one had to think that the wheels were starting to loosen up but not ready to fall off yet.

To tighten the wheels, Michigan had two very winable games against Illinois and Purdue. What happened in the second half of those games was beyond belief. A chance to become bowl eligible went up in smoke as the defense laid down and the offense sputtered, squandering second half leads to lose both games. Michigan then showed the same MO versus Wisconsin. There went the wheels.

Bringing us to Ohio State. The redemption game. The defense showed up, giving up only two scores. Unfortunately, Tate Forcier did not. His catastrophic performance against the Buckeye just may be the death knell for Rich Rod. Forciers performance may be the worst in Michigan history against Ohio State.

So with possible violations on the horizon and no bowl game what becomes of the Michigan offseason? After all, Michigan went "All In" to get Rodriguez and there has been nothing but disappointment and embarassment surrounding the program.

I believe Rodriguez will get a third season, only because the Michigan brass is searching for Bill Martins replacement and will not hire a coach without a new AD in place. For Rodriguez, he is going to have to look inside at his staff and replace a few of them. I do believe that if Rodriguez leaves Greg Robinson alone and run the defense Michigan will be solid on that side of the ball. But, Robinson needs coaches he can trust to move forward with his defensive style.

So what looms for Michigan in 2010? Who knows. With possible violations out there maybe a third season without a bowl. My suggestion, open the season with Jim Harbaugh at the helm. Let a real Michigan Man return the Wolverines to glory.